Kennda Watkins of North Nashville received a pardon from Gov. Bill Lee, Hoodline reported in August 2026, citing WKRN News 2. He had been convicted in 2010 of one count each of marijuana possession and weapon possession.
He reportedly waited about two and a half years for the pardon, and the governor phoned him with the news. The article says a pardon does not automatically remove the conviction from public records and that expungement requires a separate court process. He plans to continue work with the nonprofit You Have the Power.
Why it matters: A 2010 possession conviction took a gubernatorial pardon to address 16 years later, and the record still stays public without a separate expungement.
Source: Hoodline (citing WKRN News 2), 2026-08-04. Forgotten Prisoner's account is based on this reporting.